The Los Angeles Galaxy took another step toward clinching the top seed in the Western Conference on Wednesday, 2 October, with their 3-1 away win over the Colorado Rapids. Gabriel Pec continued his fine form by tying the score for LA at the beginning of the second half and providing two assists, one for Riqui Puig’s game-winner.
Puig would seal the game and his brace with a second goal in injury time to guarantee all three points for the Galaxy.
In a game they needed to win to keep pressure on their rivals, the Galaxy did so with a convincing second-half performance that Colorado had no answer for. The road victory, the Galaxy’s first against the Rapids since 2017, snapped LA’s road winless run at three games. It also takes the Galaxy to within four points of clinching the West crown.
With just two matches left and a six-point lead at the top of the table, the Galaxy are masters of their own destiny. And it’s because they are making the necessary adjustments to find ways to win these types of matches.
LA Galaxy Post Match
It Is How You Finish
It might have taken a half, but once the Galaxy unlocked Colorado’s press, it was curtains for the Rapids. Like the Vancouver Whitecaps before them, the Rapids would give up three second-half goals to the Galaxy.
That makes 14 second-half goals scored in the last six games for LA. They have become adept at taking the opposition’s best punch in the first half, readjusting, and then punishing their opponent in the second.
In this case, LA found a way to break a high-press Rapids defence.
“It’s a risk/reward for teams. If they want to press us, and they find a solution, there’s a lot of danger on the other side. If you want to sit low, right, you run the risk of defending a low block for long periods of time,” LA Galaxy Head Coach Greg Vanney shared. “Depending on what the game is and what the opposition is bringing to us, we have to find the solution.”
“Today, it took us till halftime to really find a solution, but we found it, and then we capitalized.”
And they capitalized almost instantly after the restart. Pec would score a perfectly weighted Mark Delgado pass to put the Galaxy on terms and open the floodgates just five minutes after the restart. That means the LA Galaxy have now scored 18 goals in the first 15 minutes of the second half, more than any other team in MLS this season.
They are ending games strongly as well. Puig’s second goal of the night came in injury time after the Galaxy had already worn out their opponent. With his strike, the Galaxy has scored 15 goals in the last 15 minutes of the second half. Only the Rapids and Portland Timbers have more goals scored in the last 15 minutes of the second half (16).
That is why, despite Colorado scoring first, it only served to wake LA up. The 2024 Galaxy is living proof that it’s not how you start, but how you finish.
Puig the Killer
Riqui Puig is playing his best soccer at precisely the right time of the season. He is doing so without the man that would supposedly “unlock him,” Champions League finalist and recent Galaxy arrival Marco Reus.
Puig has five goals and two assists in the last six matches for LA. Additionally, the #10 has scored or assisted in the last four Galaxy wins. Against Colorado, he scored his 12th and 13th goals of the season.
As his understanding with his teammates grows, so do his performances.
“I think part of the thing that’s really helping him [Puig] is the movement of the guys ahead of him. They are also creating some really difficult decisions for defenders, and then Riqui is reading off of their decision…” Vanney said of Puig.
“Obviously, what he’s able to do in terms of changing the speed of the game and getting himself facing forward and moving with the ball, it’s special.”
But where Puig is really shining is his commitment to the team. Against Vancouver, he earned plaudits from Galaxy Captain Maya Yoshida for tracking back at full sprint and recovering defensively. Against Colorado, the silky midfielder dropped deep to receive the ball, opening space in the middle of the pitch for the Galaxy to score their first goal.
There is very little Puig cannot do on the offensive end of the pitch, and he can rightly be called one of the best players in MLS. The way he took his goals against Colorado proves that.
But when he is making these types of hustle plays and playing for the badge on the shirt, he becomes the Galaxy’s MVP.
A Moment 13 Years In the Making
When the Los Angeles Galaxy take the field against Austin FC on Saturday, October 5, they will virtually be playing for their first Western Conference title in 13 years.
A win against Austin would also see the Galaxy stay undefeated at home all season and clinch the West crown for the first time since 2011. Although LA would need rivals to drop points for them to clinch, if the results are kind, Galaxy fans in attendance on Saturday could be treated to the first honour won by a Greg Vanney team.
“As I said, that’s a community thing,” Vanney confessed. “I think that’s the fans and the environment and the atmosphere that’s created in the stadium, and that’s the guys coming out and doing the business on the field that feeds back into that and get the crowd excited and going. The relationship between the energy back-and-forth has been really good.”
Puig echoed the sentiment, crediting Galaxy fans with helping them stay unbeaten at home, and urged them to make themselves felt again vs. Austin. According to Puig, the fans act as the Galaxy’s 12th man.
“We will need them,” Puig claimed.
If the team and the 12th (wo)man show up, the Galaxy should win and start to take their place alongside their 2011 predecessor.
That 2011 LA Galaxy team also won the Supporters Shield and MLS Cup, in addition to their Western Conference crown. Although the 2024 Galaxy have big shoes to fill, they are beginning to make their own mark.
The win over the Rapids gave LA their 18th win of the season, just one off their modern-era record of 19 set in 2011. It is also 10 more wins than they had in 2023. If the Galaxy wins both their remaining matches, they will set the all-time record for most wins for a Galaxy team. With two wins, they will also be just one point off their all-time best points total of 67.
Only three other Galaxy teams have reached 60 points, and two of those teams ended the season with an MLS Cup.
They are not to MLS Cup land yet, but a win over Austin will start the wheels in motion and be the first piece of the puzzle toward a sixth MLS Cup.
Most importantly, a win at home over Austin will give LA Galaxy fans a chance to enjoy a moment 13 years in the making.